All things Dairy
- Thread starter Cows 'n grass
- Start date
Speedy silage, mowed, tedded and picked up within 24 hours. Surprised by the yield, a good average as we didn't foliar feed it until the beginning of May as the T&F was late arriving and dry weather at the end of April stopped me putting urea on, as that's when it arrived.
- Location
- Pembrokeshire
Princess Pooper
Member
- Location
- East Mids
Good quality dry cow bolus. We use Oligovet, via our vets - expensive but effective. Also make sure your field is not high in potash. We do give older cows a bottle of calcium at their first milking just to be on the safe side.
Headless chicken
Member
- Location
- West Wales
We’ve half given up with standing hay but normally 8 weeks + when we used to do it. Fetched in every day for a ration with some dry cow minerals in. Touch wood and cross everything.
Also any other tips on calving outside appreciated
Worked on two Autumn calved herds doing standing hay, one 6000L one 8200L, worked well for both. I would say shut standing hay up in plenty of time, use ground which hasn't had too much slurry or nitrogen, strip graze across it. Put mag chloride in troughs for cows three weeks before calving, don't overdose or they won't drink it. Bolus at dry off for other minerals, especially if low in iodine. Getting the rest of the minerals right will also help metabolise calcium post calving and prevent calving issues.
Cows in the right condition, calving easily is as important as anything for preventing milk fever. Calcium bolus anyone you are concerned about post calving.
If you have 3 or 4 different small paddocks for calving cows that is ideal so they are not in the same place the whole time.
Should say i calve outside but now rather than Autumn so this is what employers have done but it is cheap and seemed to work well.
We normally shut up start of June to start calving middle august. Standing hay, big bale hay and feed dry cow rolls. Mag chloride flakes in water trough and dry cow mineral buckets. Don’t get too many issues (touch wood).
- Location
- Pembrokeshire
My paddock shut up now and strip graze during calving and have them through parlour everyday where they get a kg of milking cake
Very few problems and has someone as said bcs and calving ease bulls
Very few problems and has someone as said bcs and calving ease bulls
Pretty much exactly what we done. Doesnt need to be any more complicated.
Very few milk fevers and retained but we did have problems with cell counts. I would say that was our shortcomings and not that of the system.
- Location
- Pembrokeshire
2 milk fevers in 220 cows
2 rfm but there were in twins
No mag used
And there’s a transition period onto the full winter diet , which is cake and grass silage
Too late getting on it you loose milk , too early and you’ve got too much grass going into winter
- Location
- Pembrokeshire
It’s the same in all types of farming keep it simple,, too many farmers run complicated systems
Spudley
Member
- Location
- Pembrokeshire
That's not today? It's raining here!
Decent mineral lick and mag in water.
We have shut ours up already, but have just taken surplus of the platform, if we get in a corner it will be grazed then shut up by 10th June. Put cows on it 12th Aug. For psc 21st aug
We have shut ours up already, but have just taken surplus of the platform, if we get in a corner it will be grazed then shut up by 10th June. Put cows on it 12th Aug. For psc 21st aug
- Location
- somerset
min 8 weeks, just let it go by its 'cutting' stage, and let it mature.Also any other tips on calving outside appreciated
calving outside is much more healthier than inside, weather permitting.
we only feed a dry cow ration in the afternoon, as late as practical, we find cows don't calve 'overnight', saves that midnight check.
Last check 10'ish, next check 6ish, poohooed it years ago, when suggested, but tried it, funnily enough, we have never stopped it since, both spring and aut calving.
We don't start calving till oct, so some will calve inside, but still the same feeding time. Plus, its easier to catch a cow, if needed. Outside, can be difficult.
Jdunn55
Member
- Location
- Helston, cornwall
600mm with rounded top
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Headless chicken
Member
- Location
- West Wales
what’s the collectives view on how best to deal with this post graze cover?
I’d love to say this was our regenerative agri trial but in reality i just told them not to mow half of a field so I had something to turn some beef into.
Rough guess they’re eating 30-40% trampling the rest. Do we just leave it be and let the regrowth come through? Or we do we need to top it?
my preference is to leave it well alone and let nature take its course but don’t want to balls up the regrwoth for second round.